350 BIRD-LIFE OF THE BORDERS 



already described, but which have departed. From an 

 examination of the limited number of specimens I have 

 had the opportunity of handling - , all these hard-weather, 

 or mid-winter geese belong* to the bean and the pink- 

 footed species (Anser segetum and A. brachyrhynchus), 

 the latter predominating - . But to what species do the 

 larg-e spring-and-autumn birds belong - ? The grey- 

 lag is usually described as a scarce, and more or less 

 casual visitant to our north-east coast, but perhaps 

 the evidence rests on no very solid or sufficing basis. 

 Mere market specimens I dismiss as utterly worthless, 

 since, firstly, there is nowadays no certainty as to 

 whence they have come ; and, secondly, as just described, 

 a thousand geese may spend a month or two on our coast 

 and depart without losing a single member of their mess, 

 or leaving any " marketable" trace of their having been 

 here at all. 



Though we have failed to prove the case, collateral 

 evidence rather points to the probability of the double 

 passage (spring-and-autumn) geese being grey-lags. The 

 main breeding-ground of that species is on the islands of 

 the Norway coast, from Stavanger to the North Cape ; 

 they leave that country almost simultaneously about 

 September 20th, but do not appear in bulk at their great 

 winter resorts in Southern Europe till November. Where 

 are they in the meantime? The interval coincides with 

 the period at which we have the large geese above-named 

 on the north-east coast, which, moreover, lies directly on 

 their line of route. Comparing the distribution of the 

 respective species, the bean and pink-footed geese are far 

 more northerly breeders than the grey-lag, both nesting 

 northward of the Arctic circle — I found the pink-footed 

 goose breeding in Spitsbergen : and neither of these 



